AI names 3 perfect Michael Carrick replacements for Middlesbrough - ex-Everton manager features | OneFootball

After a disappointing season Middlesbrough are now searching for a new manager, with Michael Carrick out of the club.

After a disappointing season Middlesbrough are now searching for a new manager, with Michael Carrick out of the club.

The former Manchester United midfielder met with key figures at Boro on Wednesday, and exited after leading the club to 10th in the Sky Bet Championship this past season.

That was some way off their ambition of promotion into the Premier League, with Carrick unable to build on success in his debut season at the Riverside Stadium.

The 43-year-old steered Middlesbrough into the play-offs after taking over in October 2022, but subsequently missed out on the top six twice in succession.

Football League World asked ChatGPT for three potential replacements, with a list of former top-flight managers suggested by the AI.

Sean Dyche

Hard-nosed former Burnley manager Sean Dyche is out of work after leaving Everton in January.

He led Burnley to the Premier League on two separate occasions in his near-decade-long stint at Turf Moor, and even pushed the Clarets into European football before steadying them as a top-flight outfit.

The Englishman was sacked by the Clarets in April 2022 with the club towards the bottom end of the Premier League, with a yo-yo of relegation and promotion being the theme of the post-Dyche era at the club.

ChatGPT listed him as one of their three potential replacements for Carrick, but it would be hard to imagine the 53-year-old dropping back into the second tier.

His most recent stint at Everton may not have ended well, but it showed Dyche still has plenty to give at the upper end of English football with some clever football in a very difficult off-the-field situation at times.

Seeing him return to the Championship would be a major shock after the success he has managed further up the pyramid, even if an upwardly-mobile club like Boro came knocking.

Gary O’Neil

Gary O’Neil may be someone who looks to the second tier for his next opportunity though, with ChatGPT naming him as another option to fill the vacant Middlesbrough head coach position.

The former Bournemouth boss has been out of work since December, when he was dismissed by another Premier League club in the form of Wolverhampton Wanderers.

His tenure at Molineux was not plain sailing, winning just 20 of his 63 games in charge, which amassed to a 1.13 points per game ratio, according to Transfermarkt - that was better than he managed at the Cherries during the 2022-23 season, though.

O’Neil’s caretaker reign at the Vitality Stadium saw his best managerial statistics to date, losing only four of his 12 top-flight games in charge.

After a disappointing tenure at Wolves, O’Neil may need to return to the Championship to rebuild his reputation. Management can be a cruel game, but with another opportunity, the 42-year-old could prove his worth.

Middlesbrough would be a good-sized club for the coach moving down into the division, as they have their sights set on promotion rather than simply sustaining their current status.

O'Neil also has history on Teesside, having made 120 appearances for Boro between 2007-2011. However, he did also previously admit to picking up a deliberate yellow card in order to receive a suspension so he could watch the US Masters golf tournament whilst playing for Middlesbrough towards the end of the 2008/09 season.

That understandably didn't go down well with Boro fans, and as such, he may not be the most popular choice among the Riverside faithful should he be appointed.

Steve Cooper

Finally, former Nottingham Forest and Leicester City manager Steve Cooper was suggested as a replacement for Carrick by the AI tool ChatGPT.

Cooper is among the favourites to take the job, after leaving his most recent post at the King Power Stadium in November of last year.

The Welshman is a promotion winner out of the Championship, a feat he managed with Forest through the 2021/22 play-offs, surely marking him as a potential suitor for the vacant job.

The Wembley win came after he switched his role with Swansea City for the City Ground, with his stock rising by the day at the time.

His move to Leicester was a controversial one, shifting directly to one of Forest’s largest rivals, and it never got out of first gear. He struggled to help the side in their quest for solidity in the Premier League, and was sacked after just 15 games in a season that eventually saw the Foxes soundly relegated.

Like O’Niel, Cooper may himself have to go back to the second tier to find another managerial opportunity as the list of up-and-coming managers grows. He might be in pole position for the Middlesbrough job too, with an appointment backed by ChatGPT looking a very distinct possibility.